Gutierrez in Newcastle squad for Villa clash

John Carver has confirmed that Jonas Gutierrez will make his return to the Newcastle United squad following his recovery from cancer.

Published

26 February 2015

Jonas Gutierrez could feature for Newcastle United in Saturday's Premier League clash with Aston Villa, after making a full recovery from testicular cancer.

Midfielder Gutierrez returned to training in December after battling the illness and made his comeback with an appearance for Newcastle Under-21 side later that month.

Head coach John Carver insisted earlier this week that it was not the right time for Gutierrez to make a first-team return, however, he appears to have had a change of heart and could hand the Argentinian his first senior appearance since April last year.

"Jonas Gutierrez is in the squad. There's a possibility he could be on the bench and that's a massive lift for everyone," Carver said.

Gutierrez comes back into a Newcastle team eager to bounce back following a 5-0 drubbing at the hands of defending champions Manchester City last weekend.

"After that result last weekend, I was desperate to get back on the training pitch," Carver added. "We will hopefully put it right this weekend.

"I let the players suffer on Monday a little, but everyone is in good spirits now and Saturday is an opportunity to put it right."